" I would serve one term if I were elected and I'd just turn everything upside down. I'd just wreck 'em.  That's what they need, is to clean house. It's a bunch of rats in there and they need a good cleaning," 
 
           -- Carl Paladino, Pres. Ellicott Development Corp.

W B E N   O n l i n e   E x t r a Exclusive WBEN Audio On The WBEN Liveline Carl Paladino with John & Susan discussing a possible run for New York State Governor, as a third party candidate. Should Paladino Run? Share Your Thoughts and Read Your Neighbors' comments at the bottom of the page

Carl Paladino, Buffalo's largest downtown landlord and an outspoken critic of government is considering a run for Governor in 2010, as an alternative candidate put forth by the TEA Party movement in Western New York.

The group says it wants to draft Paladino, and he says he is considering it.

"I just don't see any leadership coming up. Although I am not the type of person to run for office, I am looking at it. I've got to learn more about it, " Paladino says.

Paladino has often danced on the edges of various campaigns, and helped bankroll Republican Kevin Helfer's unsucessful run for Buffalo Mayor in 2005 but has never himself ran for public office.

The President of Ellicott Development Corp., Paladino has long been outspoken on local education issues, calling for the school board and teachers union president Philip Rumore to resign, and funding various billboards or advertisements to advance the message.

In 2008, he raised the ire of Buffalo's city council by suggesting g that Mayor Byron Brown's election would have not occurred were Brown not an African American.  In response, The City Council briefly considered but rejected the idea of banning city business with Paladino and his Ellicott Development Corp.

And in 2006, he successfully sued New York State  for removal of toll collection on the Niagara Section of the New York State Thruway.

"I think what we are seeing in Albany is sick. Its a little too much for the people and no one is speaking for them. And the phony politicians are still dragging us through a charade right now," he says. "This tea party movement is very very strong, maybe this is just the moment to get in there and turn Albany upside down."

So far, former Long Island Congressman Rick Lazio is the only Republican to announce a candidacy, while Incumbent David Paterson is the only announced Democrat.  Earlier this week several county Democratic party chairmen met to discuss ways to discourage a Paterson candidacy in favor of an all but announced race being contemplated by Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. 

"The idea here is let the Republicans and the Democrats go out with their  candidates there and beat the hell out of each other, then after that let disaffected voters have a place to go." he said

Polls have shown Cuomo beating Paterson in a primary, but Paterson  runs neck and neck with Lazio in a potential match-up should Cuomo not run. Cuomo beats Lazio by 66% -24%, according to the latest from The Siena Research Institute.
 
Paladino says he would not run a traditional race and therefore wouldn't need the kind of funding that stymied Erie County Executive Chris Collins's recently aborted exploratory campaign. Collins said he would need to have raised approximately $1 million a week between now and election day to run a credible campaign. 

Paladino says grass root support could substitute for cash, and a campaign could easily be waged without the anywhere near raising a benchmark $30 million.

"That's the old traditional ways with all the parties and all the blood suckers and all the charlatans," Paladino says.